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And in actual fact my impression is that most of the 4.5% tendency have remained in the party - the belief "their time will come again" is still (surprisingly?) strong.

Several of those who left, moreover, did so because they fell for the hype about a shiny new "centrist" party emerging to save them. Given this is looking less rather than more likely as time passes, I wouldn't be surprised to see some trickling back to Labour in the coming months and years.

And in actual fact my impression is that most of the 4.5% tendency have remained in the party - the belief "their time will come again" is still (surprisingly?) strong.

Several of those who left, moreover, did so because they fell for the hype about a shiny new "centrist" party emerging to save them. Given this is looking less rather than more likely as time passes, I wouldn't be surprised to see some trickling back to Labour in the coming months and years.

Thoughts with those in South Florida today.....and all those on the islands who have been affected. I only hope that events of the last month will show the US that engaging with attempts to limit the effects of climate change should be accelerated, not slowed down

On the 'Blairites' in Labour etc - they are welcome to be members and put their case forward in my view - FPTP necessitates political parties to have have a broad swathe of opinions

There are a number of reasons why I find them difficult to engage with though

1. Their assumption that the Labour victory was only down to Blair and a move rightwards - the Labour Party were well ahead under Smith as well, and Blair actually ran in his early days on a programme that was quite different to where he is now

2. The Labour Government did many good things from 1997-2010 but they also presided over the excesses of the financial sector and paid little attention to the stagnation of wages and the increase in asset prices

3. A number of MPs from the right wing of the party were too happy to echo the Tory mantra post 2010 and blame excess public spending for the impact of the financial crash rather than where the true blame lied - we are seeing the same errors repeated now, in part because the Labour Party allowed these mistruths to become 'fact'.

4. Too many Labour MPs were sympathetic to the basis of austerity and believed in the flawed economic principles that backed up Thatcherism and Reaganism

5. Too many threw their toys out of the pram when Miliband and Corbyn were elected - because they couldn't accept that the party was changing

6. This wing of the party still has too much power over the party institutions which has allowed them to suspend and expel members with far too little evidence - I hesitate to use the words 'witch hunt' but these same people are only too happy to use it to describe possible deselection of candidates when at the same time they have presided over real expulsions of members

7. Trying to facilitate the undemocratic removal of a leader - first by instigating the most pathetic attempt at a coup and then by trying to remove him from the ballot when he was challenged

8. Using the extreme right-wing media outlets to attack the Labour Party and its policies - including that most despicable of Murdoch-owned rags!

So they are welcome to stay and welcome to argue their point of view - what I would say is that I, and many members of the party, think they are wrong and they should work on persuasion rather than the tactics we have seen in the last couple of years

If we take Brexit as an example, the party is moving in a direction that is more acceptable to those who supported Remain. This was not achieved by crying to the press or calling for people to resign. It was done by the use of discussion and the influence of people like Starmer and other members of the Shadow Cabinet putting forward reasoned arguments.

Jess Phillips may like the sound of her own voice and think herself very influential but how many people do you think she convinces with her self-centred rants in right-wing newspapers - or, in fact, her sharing the stage (after complimenting) an extreme right-wing would-be 18th century right-wing toff?

Anyway, we had Blair saying this morning that we could "stop Brexit" if we got tough on immigration - and his faithful parrot Adonis (who was seemingly under the impression no party leader had ever gone on to become PM after losing an election, until corrected by lots of people on Twitter) echoing him.

Some might ask "if we have to do that, what's the point?"

(worth pointing out, too, that when the likes of Corbyn McDonnell or even Starmer say free movement will end with Brexit they don't necessarily mean the same thing)

Anyway, we had Blair saying this morning that we could "stop Brexit" if we got tough on immigration - and his faithful parrot Adonis (who was seemingly under the impression no party leader had ever gone on to become PM after losing an election, until corrected by lots of people on Twitter) echoing him.

Some might ask "if we have to do that, what's the point?"

(worth pointing out, too, that when the likes of Corbyn McDonnell or even Starmer say free movement will end with Brexit they don't necessarily mean the same thing)

I read that - seems to be living in a fantasy land as it seems to be predicated on the old leaver argument that they need us more than we need them so they will change all their rules just to suit us - only difference he is talking about keeping us in and they are talking about the future trade deal

Again an example of his complete and utter inability to take any responsibility. One thing you can say that Blair was in his time as PM it was promoting immigration and reducing immigration controls (removing exit checks, or no transition period for new accession countries for example) - you can argue whether he was right to wrong to do that but for him to now do a volte face is a bit rich

That is why I have come to despise Blair - not so much for what he did in office (apart from Iraq) but his total hypocrisy and lack of self-awareness he has shown since he left office. Does he not know how much he is held in contempt?

There's a profound revulsion in the UK of giving everyone an ID card like other EU nations do to accurately tally who's in and out of the country(-ies). I respect that reluctance. Hell if I know what to do.

@PorFavorPublished today! Good find. Some authors' lives are more interesting to me than others.I'd love to come across the letters Cassandra Austen was said to have burned when Jane was gone.I'd promise not to tell a soul what they contained if I thought I could keep my word but I can't so never mind.

@PorFavorPublished today! Good find. Some authors' lives are more interesting to me than others.I'd love to come across the letters Cassandra Austen was said to have burned when Jane was gone.I'd promise not to tell a soul what they contained if I thought I could keep my word but I can't so never mind.

Saw the new memorial, in Winchester 2 weeks ago,opposite the house, Jane Austen spent her last days.Heard a lady bemoaning to a friend (on being asked about his well being) that her son was at Harrow, but hating it, despite the £30k fees & it made her question the point of it all.Seemed a bit inappropriate, seeing the wording of the memorial.

“‘You are in a melancholy humour and fancy that anyone unlike yourself must be happy. But remember that the pain of parting from friends will be felt by everybody at times, whatever be their education or state. Know your own happiness. You want nothing but patience; or give it a more fascinating name: call it hope.'”

Minority governments are easy to wound, but much harder to killAndrew Rawnsley

Rawnsley -

Quote:

Every legislative idea will be subject to a pitiless assessment by the government’s business managers of the prospects of squeaking it through parliament.

The quality of the proposal will matter a whole lot less than the whips’ cold-eyed calculus of whether it might be at risk of a defeat. Good ideas will fall by the wayside along with the rotten ones. Many decisions will simply go unmade. Three months into the life of this government and civil servants are reporting that much of Whitehall is already paralysed by the combination of Brexit and ministers who daren’t chance votes in parliament.

He didn't mention the Tory plan taking legislative oversight out of the House of Commons with government’s European Union Withdrawal Bill

Crosby told the senior advisers, who had gathered to discuss the party’s strategy over a meal of chicken lasagne and potatoes: “By the way, mate, it’s not about being the change candidate, it’s about doing what people want.”

Of far more interest in the article is the fact that both Labour and the Tories were not expecting a hung parliament, which kind of suggests that the key voters that shaped the outcome had a voter profile that neither party had really focussed on or talked to. It's odd that May didn't consider how calling a snap election would torpedo what was arguably her only strength, which was the perception of being a safe pair of hands. Which takes us back to the question of why did she risk an election she didn't need to call. Sure, the numbers looked good, but still. There has been some fascinating raking over the coals of the disastrous Tory election campaign lately, but none of it really takes me any closer to understanding what May was hoping to achieve, either by triggering article 50 in March - something she was quite adamant on for no obvious reason - or by holding an election directly after it was triggered.

TUC Congress backs staying in the single market for at least as long as Brexit transition - and potentially permanently

“The UK should seek a transitional period after leaving the EU in March 2019. This is a pragmatic solution, and recognises that the government’s criminal lack of preparation means that a good Brexit deal cannot be achieved by March 2019.

“The simplest option to minimise disruption across all sectors of the economy, is for the current arrangements to continue with the UK remaining a member of the single market and customs union during the transition period.

“This will protect tariff-free, barrier-free frictionless trade with the EU as well as protecting workers’ existing rights and making sure the UK benefits from any further EU rights introduced during this period.”

“The school is ‘guiding’ children to continue with subjects where they will preferably get an A grade,” said the parent of one girl who was told she couldn’t continue A-level chemistry.

This country has gone insane. I mean, a C is a pass, surely? Even a D can count for a university course (I should know!). A friend struggled to scrape passes in sciences when she could have got better grades at other subjects because she needed them to study medicine. She's now a GP. A blooming good one too. How did schools get so far away from what they are supposed to be for? Who gives a crap if someone gets a C at A level if they go on to get a 1st at uni? Stupid trophy-hunting heads who only give a toss about their own vanity, that's who.

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